Published: Saturday, October 5, 2013 at 04:56 PM.

NICEVILLE — Thirty-two years ago last week, 59-year-old Leonard “Buddy” Phelps was found beaten and shot outside his business, Phelps Brothers Boat Works on John Sims Parkway.

The 1981 case has had several breaks in recent years and has led investigators to some other crimes along the way, said Okaloosa County Sheriff's Investigator Mike Irwin.

“We do feel like the case can move forward, but the more we dug, the more arose,” Irwin said.

A well-off man who disliked banks, Phelps attracted attention, especially when he showered a young girlfriend with gifts, Irwin said.

“He flashed money, so to speak,” Irwin said.

Phelps’ business had been burglarized in March 1981.

When his body was discovered, authorities also found that the apartment he kept above his business had been ransacked.

It likely was being burglarized when Phelps happened to be there, Irwin said.

But the case is larger than just his killing, Irwin said.

“It got big,” Irwin said. “It got quite large real fast.”

The investigation identified a “criminal element” in north Okaloosa County that lasted from the 1980s to about 2009 or 2010, Irwin said. It was made up of an older crowd who soon brought in younger associates.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement was brought in to assist in the case in April because of the multiple jurisdictions involved, Irwin said.

The investigation has taken sheriff’s and FDLE investigators to Mississippi, Louisiana and Alabama, Irwin said.

It also led deputies to the evidence that indicated Jackie Darrell Long and his son, Shane Darrell Long, severely beat Henry Jordan at his home in Wing, Ala., on New Year's Eve 2005. Jordan died from his injuries in 2007.

The Longs were indicted in June.

There are still people in north Okaloosa who likely have information about Phelps’ killing, even if they didn’t know him personally, Irwin said.

He asks that anyone who can help to contact him at 850-689-5659 or the Emerald Coast Crime Stoppers at 850-863-TIPS.

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NICEVILLE — Thirty-two years ago last week, 59-year-old Leonard “Buddy” Phelps was found beaten and shot outside his business, Phelps Brothers Boat Works on John Sims Parkway.

The 1981 case has had several breaks in recent years and has led investigators to some other crimes along the way, said Okaloosa County Sheriff's Investigator Mike Irwin.

“We do feel like the case can move forward, but the more we dug, the more arose,” Irwin said.

A well-off man who disliked banks, Phelps attracted attention, especially when he showered a young girlfriend with gifts, Irwin said.

“He flashed money, so to speak,” Irwin said.

Phelps’ business had been burglarized in March 1981.

When his body was discovered, authorities also found that the apartment he kept above his business had been ransacked.

It likely was being burglarized when Phelps happened to be there, Irwin said.

But the case is larger than just his killing, Irwin said.

“It got big,” Irwin said. “It got quite large real fast.”

The investigation identified a “criminal element” in north Okaloosa County that lasted from the 1980s to about 2009 or 2010, Irwin said. It was made up of an older crowd who soon brought in younger associates.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement was brought in to assist in the case in April because of the multiple jurisdictions involved, Irwin said.

The investigation has taken sheriff’s and FDLE investigators to Mississippi, Louisiana and Alabama, Irwin said.

It also led deputies to the evidence that indicated Jackie Darrell Long and his son, Shane Darrell Long, severely beat Henry Jordan at his home in Wing, Ala., on New Year's Eve 2005. Jordan died from his injuries in 2007.

The Longs were indicted in June.

There are still people in north Okaloosa who likely have information about Phelps’ killing, even if they didn’t know him personally, Irwin said.

He asks that anyone who can help to contact him at 850-689-5659 or the Emerald Coast Crime Stoppers at 850-863-TIPS.